As you know, the development of solid-state lighting has occurred over the course of decades. But, it wasn’t until the past 10 years or so that technology has enabled solid-state LED illumination to gain a growing foothold in the lighting industry. Particularly during the last decade, the field saw growth in leaps and bounds with no sign of slowing. In fact, most experts in the field anticipate that LEDs will account for 75% of the lighting market by the year 2030.
Defining LED and Solid-State Lighting
Solid-state lighting refers to types of lighting that use semiconductor LEDs (light emitting diodes) as sources of illumination, as opposed to electrical filaments, plasma, or gas. The term “solid-state” refers to light emitted by solid-state electroluminescence. In terms of lighting, the result is that solid-state lighting creates visible light with less heat and energy dissipation.
Slow and steady development wins the race
As you know, the first practical applications of LED technology made their first appearance in the 1960s. At the time, the first LEDs emitted a low-intensity infrared light that is actually still frequently used today in remote controls and other popular consumer electronics.
Although it took decades before the cost of making LEDs lowered to make mass production more feasible, even early LED lights were meant to replace their incandescent counterparts. LED bulbs quickly replaced incandescent bulbs in indicator lamps for electronic devices and later were packaged into seven-segment displays like those seen in digital clocks.
Benefits that Keep Getting Better
Although the first visible-light LEDs were limited to red and could only produce low-intensity light, modern LEDs are available across the entire spectrum from visible to ultraviolet and infrared wavelengths. LED technology has also led to the development of newer, smarter displays and sensors. LEDs have also established a foothold in the field of communications as the high switching rates of SSL is useful in more advanced communications technologies.
Solid-state lighting has a host of advantages over traditional and incandescent light sources. When compared to incandescent lights, LED Lights:
- Consume less energy
- Last longer
- Are sturdier
- Are smaller in size
- Have a faster switching rate
- Have a more diverse set of applications
LEDs can be used in everything from aviation lighting to camera flashes and even wallpaper. Just this year, LED home lighting solutions were found to be as cost effective or cheaper than comparable traditional options. Talk to one of our lighting design experts today to see how much money you can save by switching to solid-state lighting for your home or business!
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